Today’s Parola del giorno is the noun expression l’ora di punta, which means rush hour.

L’ora di punta is that period of time in the morning when everyone is going to work or that period of time in the evening as everyone heads home: usually between 7am-9am and 4pm-6pm.

See the phrase used below:

Marco odia l’ora di punta quando la metro è troppo affollata; preferisce andare al lavoro verso le 6.30 per evitare la folla e le interruzioni di servizio.

Marco hates rush hour when the metro is too crowded; he prefers to go to work around 6:30 AM to avoid the crowd and breakdowns.